Shadow of the Halberd
by PrincesTomboy
Summary: What could have happened to Metaknight to cause him to end up injured on the forest floor, without his ship or any crew members but his apprentices Sword and Blade? **Contains fan characters and headcanons, might not be %100 consistant with games and anime**
1. Oh good, he's awake!

[[Entry One]]

Vaguely, I heard two voices, both teenagers.

"Sir! Sir! Wake up..." A frightened boy's voice…

"Sir Metaknight! Snap out of it..." And a worried girl's.

I slowly opened my eyes. My head was throbbing like mad, I felt dizzy, my entire being ached, and I was fatigued. Although none of the damage seemed permanent, I doubted I could stand. I remained in my current sitting position with my back against the tree, or whatever it was I had somehow found myself upon. Looking up at the two knights in training drowsily, a weak smile appeared on my face in thankfulness, despite being in considerable pain.

"Oh good, he's awake!" The boy said, sounding relieved. His name; Blade, a comrade of mine with green and gold armor. The girl, who was clad in purple armor, let out a sigh of relief. Her name; Sword.

"Yes, I'm awake you two. Say..." I began, glancing around almost in a daze but unable to see clearly where I was. Sword and Blade were eager to do whatever was in their power to assist me, and it shown on their somewhat blurred faces. "... Where are we?" I inquired, rubbing my eyes in a futile attempt to stop my distorted vision.

"We're in the forest of Whispy Woods, Sir." Blade answered as he pointed above me to what I was leaned against. His face portrayed him to be a bit uncomfortable, probably because it was painfully obvious to him. Glancing up, I saw that the tree I was propped against had a thick branch-like nose, with notch-like crevices for eyes and a mouth. Whispy woods himself, of course.

"_That would've been so obvious, if my head wasn't spinning..._" I thought to myself, feeling a tad ashamed. Using the 'tree' I was propped against, I attempted to stand. My body still ached, but I managed to by leaning against my only means of support, which surprisingly wasn't attacking us for trespassing. "Well, that explains that." I said simply, still feeling rather idiotic for not noticing. "Now... How did I get here?" I felt awkward, I had just regained consciousness and I was hounding my two knights in training with questions.

Sword was the one to reply. "We're... not quite sure, Sir." A weak smile of embarrassment shown across her features, which was most likely since she was not able to answer my inquiry. "You see...We only found you a little while ago passed out and injured on the forest floor."

Blade immediately completed her sentence for her in the usual fashion of the two. "It's because we were doing rounds here under orders by King Dedede; really lucky, huh? We propped you up on Whispy here because we thought it'd help... or... something. It was Sword's idea." He practically sang like he was proud of himself admitting it hadn't been his idea, just an obvious attempt to lighten the dim and ever dulling mood. Not surprisingly, it was their turn to attack with questions. They almost simultaneously asked one and only thing; "Do you have any idea how you got here, Sir Metaknight?" Though the phrasing was slightly different between them, there was obvious worry in both of their tones that overshadowed the question itself.

"Heh..." I half smiled and half sighed, becoming fully aware I couldn't move from the leader of the forest in my current state. "Well, I'll explain..." I tried anyway. "A-As soon as I can get some medical attention." My voice broke slightly from my injured body as I fell back against Whispy Woods, an embarrassing circumstance indeed.

They looked at each other for a moment, both noticing and agreeing I didn't seem in a state to walk on my own. Behaving like mirror images, they both saluted with a "Sir, Yes, Sir!" and picked up their respective helmets in one arm each, taking my arms with their others to help me get to the medical office in Castle DeDeDe. I winced at the sudden action since I hadn't anticipated it, but I didn't resist. I knew I couldn't walk without some form of assistance, much less from the forest of Whispy Woods to the far off castle's clinic.


	2. Someone, answer me!

[[Entry Two]]

Upon reaching the castle, and a few looks from various waddle dees or doos showing curiosity and concern, we arrived at the clinic. A light blue waddle dee with a long ponytail down to her feet had her back to us, tending to a waddle dee who apparently had gotten his foot injured. We seemed to have good timing, for just as we entered the waddle dee hopped off the table he had been on for bandaging. As he scurried out of the room and probably returned to his duties, the female dee who had been working on him turned and noticed us.

"Ah, the knights in shining armor are _here_? How surprising! Well, what seems to be the problem?" She asked with a joyful tone, getting right to the point. Her voice was calm, clear and mature despite being the same age as the knights currently helping me to stand. Her pale pink face and light gray eyes shone with somewhat uncomforting joy and happiness, especially considering she constantly deals with injuries or sickness. The gold and purple matching headdress and parasol she adorned when occasionally battling with my crew were replaced with a nurse's cap and first aid kit. It was rare I saw her in this attire, as well as the first time I have been the patient for her.

"I'll explain, Bubbles. You see..." Sword began, explaining everything they knew in only the detail necessary to the job of helping my wounds to mend, with Blade chiming in every time she left something he considered important out.

"Oh, I see..." Bubbles said, tilting her head. She seemed confused, startled, or amazed at the story. It's hard to tell with her, but was most likely some possible combination of the three. After a few moments of hesitation, she took a step aside and motioned toward the table the waddle dee was sitting on when we had come in. "Please, lie down. I'll examine you Metaknight, Sir." She requested it kindly and happily.

Stepping away from Sword and Blade, I walked over and pulled myself onto and laid down on the table to be examined, a little difficult in my current state. I was only not requesting Sword and Blade's help due to the embarrassment; in all honesty I could really have used it. Bubbles practically hopped around me; examining every cut and bruise, bandaging me up, and possibly some other things. I didn't pay much attention to what she was doing; I felt drained of energy and was fighting a battle with myself to not fall out of consciousness where I was.

Almost as soon as Bubbles had finished bandaging me, Blade again questioned me with what had happened to cause me to end up how they had found me. The back of his head immediately met with Sword's fist to 'stop pestering without even giving Sir Metaknight a chance to speak', as she loudly muttered under her breath after dealing the correction.

I sighed, sitting up with some difficulty to begin an explanation. This behavior was all too typical of them…

Pacing the decks of the Halberd, I stopped to glance over the side. In a rather slow place, the battleship was gliding over Cappytown, soon to reach Whispy's forest. I could see a few cappies playing soccer through the main square, and was able to pick out Tiff and Tuff among them. These were of course Kirby's guardians for the time being, the former much more than the latter. Since being in charge tended to be a very uneventful duty when there wasn't an emergency, I watched them play for a while. After all, there's little reason to keep your guard up on your own ship.

I'm unsure of how long it was, but not soon after my view of the children was traded for one of the forest I heard approaching footsteps behind me. Assuming it was one of my loyal employees come to tell me some minor problem I must attend to, I turned around. Ax Knight was standing behind me, his skull-like… face or mask, even I am starting to forget… comfortingly familiar to me despite the disturbing appearance. Something seemed a bit off, however. His red eyes unfocused and strangely dead, his body oddly relaxed.

"Yes, Ax Knight? What are you here to tell me?" I asked simply. No reply, with his eyes staying in that dazed state he didn't seem to hear me. As I walked toward him, repeating myself more or less, Mace Knight and Trident Knight stepped out behind him. Both were clad in purple and gold with face-concealing visors, but despite that I could tell something was wrong.

My hand went to my sword hilt, Ax Knight coming at me at the same time. Dodging his swipe, I drew Galaxia. The magical blade formed in my hand from its element- thunder, lightning, electricity, whatever you wish to call it- in mere seconds. Using it to block a stab from Trident Knight, I noticed Javelin Knight and a few Mr. UFOs swooping in from seemingly nowhere. Mace Knight's turn, as I was distracted he used his weapon to hit me square in the face. My mask took the brunt of the damage, nearly shattering it but saving me from injury.

A full fight broke out, one against seven. I was trying to play defensively, not wanting to injure my crewmates, but that strategy wasn't working in the slightest. Pushed back against a wall with a hit from Trident Knight, I ended up slamming into an intercom. Realizing it instantly, I barked commands to the bridge as I blocked more attacks.

"All hands to port! I'm being attacked! I repeat: all hands to port! Someone, answer me!" Captain Vul, Sailor Dee, and the other members there would surely be there to assist me… but no such luck. They must have been there since the ship was still flying, but as with the knights I was currently fighting they did not reply. I was shot with a few lasers from the Mr. UFOs, my armor again taking the brunt of the damage. Axe Knight swiped, destroying my mask. The shattered remains fell at my feet as I was struck with more lasers, only barely managing to block another attack from the trident. By now they had pressed me away from the wall and to railing over one side.

Mace Knight struck me dead-center, the supporting rails collapsing as I fell backwards, bound for the forest below. Luckily, I had a few abilities left- one of which was to transform my cape into bat wings suitable for flight. As I spread them and nearly recovered myself, something flashed on either side of me. A Javelin through each one from the aptly named knight, preventing them from catching air; I plummeted. The last thing I heard was a snap, whether it was a tree branch I hit on the way down or something within me breaking I don't know.


	3. We're going to need a ship

[[Entry Three]]

Apparently I fell asleep soon after explaining what had happened, against my will and gone from my memory. I woke up in my own room, probably carried there by either Sword and Blade, or a few waddle dees. I stretched, instantly regretting it as the pain rushed back. With nothing else to do without causing me more pain than was worth It, I stared at the ceiling and collected my thoughts.

The more I thought, the more I came back to a single sentence. _Why did they do it?_ It didn't even vary in my mind, the same phrase repeating over and over without an answer to be had. I hate to admit what repeated in my mind even more. _Don't they care about me?_

As foolish as it sounds, I've always thought of my crew as my family. Never having been that close to a real family, my parents and my brother weren't usually near me in personality or physical distance; those that I've fought with have always felt more like relatives. I've been with the crew of the Halberd for so long they barely seemed like a hired crew any more. More like an extended family…_ I thought we were closer than that…_

While I was lost in my own thoughts, Sword had come into the room. "… I said, are you feeling okay, Sir Metaknight?" She questioned, evidently I'd missed the first time she asked.

"Okay enough, I'll get better." I said, forcing myself to sit up despite better judgment. "Did you just come to check up on me?"

"Well, no sir." She shook her head and approached me. I noticed from the lack of sound that she was barefoot, though why the fact was of any concern to me was beyond my own understanding. "Apparently a Burnin' Leo clan south of here saw the Halberd; one reported to King Dedede that it attacked their village." She kept her voice calm and quiet for my sake, though her worry was visibly close to the surface.

I remained silent for a few moments, doing my best not to move anything because everything hurt to move. "We're going to need a ship." I said, glancing at her.

The visual order was obviously received; she exited the room to go commandeer one.


	4. You need Kirby's help!

[[Entry Four]]

After resting a while and eating something Bubbles brought me, I gained enough energy to stand, dress, and walk despite the pain that came with it. After checking a clock, and then a nearby window since my vision was too blurry to read it correctly, it was about 2pm. Since it was a little before noon since I was last on the Halberd, around 24 hours had probably passed. As I carefully walked through the castle, I met and explained to various passing staff- mostly waddle dees, though there was the waddle doo that lead them to speak with as well- that I would be fine. I had recently noticed the incredible lack of places to sit within the castle, and since my legs were too strained to go without one for much longer I made the way to the courtyard. A large fountain was working in the center with benches all around, once of which I chose to rest on as I recovered. The fountain was actually concealing the hanger where the Halberd usually lay, but since it was empty for obvious reasons I could relax without needing to scramble away if someone were to open it.

After maybe ten minutes, Blade ran up to me. "Ah, Sir Metaknight! There you are! Are you okay? Well obviously since you can walk now I guess. What are you doing here? Doesn't matter actually, Sword wanted me to tell you; we found a ship! It's kind of small but that way it only needs two people to run it. Is that okay? I mean, there aren't many waddle dees that know how to fly ships other than Sailor Dee and he's… kinda… busy… so we'll need it that small! Right?"

The string of questions I couldn't answer was actually comforting; I'd prefer not to give another speech about how I'd be alright soon enough. I nodded in response to that last one- though technically all the questions would be answered to the positive except for what I was doing in this courtyard. He didn't need to know I was unable to walk without resting periods, of course, so that was fine.

After a brief silence, I stood. "We should go meet up with her, then. No need to wait." _No need to help me either, Blade_. I thought, and luckily he'd decided I could manage on my own.

We made it to the ship quite quickly. Sword and a helpful GIM robot seemed to have flown it in front of the castle, where a few young cappies had crowded around to see why there was something new in their town. Tuff was with them, though judging from the time Tiff was probably the only one who had stayed in school… at least, if I was remembering correctly and it was a week day. They all noticed my bandages, and as usual were interested.

"Don't worry, children. There was an accident but I'll be fine." I tried to comfort them, though Tuff was as usual not accepting of a 'boring' answer.

"An accident like when you attacked those Burnin' Leos?" He asked, crossing his arms and pouting. After a few moments, he stopped and looked bashful instead. "My sister told me." He said, correctly guessing that neither of them should know.

I sighed; I'd have to explain _something_. "**I** attacked no one, my ship was stolen." I tried my best to sound calm as emotions swelled. _Stolen by its once-loyal crew_.

Tuff gasped. "What took it? Was it another demon beast?" Before I could answer, he went on using that conclusion. "You need Kirby's help!" I put a hand on his shoulder before he could run to find the little pink puff.

"I can handle this on my own, Tuff. I won't need Kirby's help with this." I said, shaking my head and hoping he understood not to press the issue.

"Why not?" Tiff had apparently ran up during the explanation, she seemed almost offended. "He's been victorious against plenty of villainous creatures and saved Popstar from lots of bleak situations! Including you, if you'll remember." She didn't mean the last part as an insult; I had managed to explain to them that when I 'tried to take over Dreamland' it was for benevolent reasons. I was trying to let them prepare for worse threats and be able to defend themselves, and Kirby had ruined it by playing the hero and crashed my ship without the lazy citizens needing to do anything. I wasn't exactly spiteful from that instance, but I knew he would end up doing more harm than good if he tried to help again.

Tuff stared at her blankly; obviously her vocabulary was a bit too difficult for kids her own age to understand, much less a few years younger like her little brother. "I said, he's saved the world from bad guys before!" Tiff explained in simpler terms, annoyed at her brother for making her spell it out.

"I know! Geez, Sis!" Tuff responded, seeming just as offended. I sighed; this was wasting time we could be using to save my crew. Or, stop them. Hopefully both. Luckily, Sword broke up the little argument for me.

"Come on you two, no matter how you phrase it, we all know! Kirby's a great hero, especially for one so young, but Sir Metaknight can handle himself." She shot a glare at them. It was obvious she was telling them not to point out the obvious; if I could handle myself, I wouldn't be bandaged as much as I was. They half-heartedly apologized before running off; thankfully all the children have learned when not to argue about serious situations.


	5. So, it's just temporary

[[Entry Five]]

The ship was rather quaint. It was not old or damaged as was typical of anything 'newly' acquired from the average shady dealer. It was just much smaller than the extravagant Halberd was, and thus I felt somewhat uncomfortable in it. Not that it mattered, if it worked- which was obvious from the fact that Sword and that GIM managed to get it here- we were using it. I would probably get used to it before the wounds healed; which was, hopefully, **soon**.

There were four of us excluding me; Sword, Blade, the GIM, a waddle doo with some experience whose name was apparently Swirls. We found our rooms rather easily- there were only four, but since GIMs can simply be turned off he did not require a bed. Soon enough, we were off to the clan that was attacked to see if we could help, or at least fine some information about my ship.

"Hey, uhh, Sir Metaknight?" Blade called from behind the door to my room, which I had closed so I could rest a bit more. "I have a question I'd like to ask."

"Go ahead and come in, Blade." I called, trying to snap myself out of the half-asleep daze I had let myself fall into.

He entered, and I noticed he was wearing casual clothes instead of his armor. He was barefoot, like Sword had been. _Do they own shoes that aren't armored boots?_ I wondered absentmindedly as Blade walked in, closing the door behind him.

"So… I was wondering… why **don't **we get Kirby's help?" he asked. I wasn't sure if that was his whole question or if I had missed the first half again. I shot a glare at him; he should know the answer by now.

"I'm sure you could figure it out on your own." I began, hoping he wasn't as dense as he suddenly seemed. I knew I was in a horrible mood from the pain, stress, and strange surroundings, but I wasn't about to stop now. "Kirby is a **child**. He's got incredible potential and he's a hero in his own right. But he has almost no self control. I'm not about to let him destroy my ship and my-" I hesitated for a moment to avoid saying a certain word. "My crew! Once he learns to handle himself, maybe, but otherwise I do not trust, nor will I ever trust, a **baby** with something as serious as this." I sighed, honestly relieved to be able to vent like that.

"O-oh." Blade stammered out, probably taken aback by my sudden flood of anger. "So, it's just temporary. Once you teach him how to not keep blowing things up, you'll trust him with stuff like this?" He asked, summing up what I said rather well. I nodded, and he quickly left my room. I hoped I hadn't frightened him, but whether I did or not it was his own job to not take something like that to heart. I did hope I hadn't frightened him though; Sword and Blade were, of course, included in that silly feeling of mine that my crew was essentially my family.


	6. Don't deny that you're hurt

[[Entry Six]]

It took around six hours to actually arrive at the campsite-like town of Burnin' Leo. They were a nomadic race, so they never set up very permanent structures- they built simple homes resembling tents and hunted for themselves instead of attempting agriculture. A peaceful race, but very territorial- I doubted they would have mentioned it to King Dedede if my ship had simply flown over, however. Glancing further from the town, I saw a large burned patch- I doubted it was the fault of the tribe despite their name, most likely the town had been much bigger before the Halberd arrived. I shuddered, so many things were going wrong, so many people were hurt, and I was sure more would be hurt in the future if I didn't do something to fix it.

As we exit the new craft, it was obvious we weren't the first here. Lololo, a small blue thing from a nearby 'town' made up of just one large home. It was on the far south of the oversized island that made up Dreamland, on an isle, and as we were in the northern deserts currently so it was quite a wonder how he or his girlish pink friend/sister/more Lalala had heard of the 'accident'. The only other figure out of place was slightly taller than me, with a cream and bronze outfit that might resemble what might appear if you left my navy and gold to bleach in the sun. In his holster was a slate gray hilt with a yellow gem, which matched my eyes perfectly as Galaxia's hilt matched his. It seemed almost fated, for brothers' to have matching weapons. Of course, he had chosen his own easily where I had somewhat unwillingly obtained mine from a monster, at the loss of a dear friend. I hoped this instance would not be repeated for my ship.

The two from the south were conversing with a native girl, clad in the cultural norm- dyed leather and polished stone, the attractive yet easy to obtain alternate to diamonds and velvet. My rarely-seen brother, however, broke his own conversation with a similar girl as soon as I exited the craft. I wondered if the gender ratio was skewed with this species, or if perhaps the men were busy with less 'degrading' tasks than detailing witness reports to strangers.

"Hello, Haloknight." I had managed to get over the term 'big bro' shortly after reaching legal age, with him around two years ahead of me.

"Hello, brother. I would have hoped you remember I prefer just 'Halo'." I don't think he's ever used the term 'little' to describe me, another small thing to be thankful for. After a hesitation, he added "I'm not sure if I should hope those injuries are unrelated to what happened here." He was generally concerned, his face mask revealing his eyes much more than my shadowy equivalent, now that I noticed it.

"It rather depends on what you call related." I said gruffly, hoping he could still pick up when I didn't want to explain despite our lack of communication.

He sighed. "Well, if you and this land heal soon, that's all I can ask for." He turned slightly to give a better view of the girl he was talking to, who was either an incredibly short young woman or a slightly overdeveloped girl. It was almost entrancing the way her firey 'hair' flickered, but that might be remnants of the pain making me unfocused.

"Her name is Cali." My brother explained. She was rolling a pebble with the sole of a shoe; she seemed rightfully shy and uneasy. "One of the tents destroyed was her family's."

"It is good thing we leave to hunt at time." She said, so quiet I nearly missed it. I was surprised at her somewhat broken words, but it didn't make much sense for a species to adopt the 'civilized' Dreamland language if they only rarely communicated with outsiders. She did seem to have a pretty good understanding of it though, as I've heard Blade speak that inaccurately at his most tongue-tied. We exchanged bows, thankfully some customs overlapped.

"I'm so sorry for what happened, and I'm glad not too many were hurt." I hoped that was actually true, since no one had provided me with a casualty report.

She nodded. "Lux hit, he recover soon." Only one injury? Thank God, whoever he was he wasn't being completely merciless with me today.

"I'm glad. And I promise you, we'll do everything we can not to let this happen again." She smiled at this, and spoke something that sounded more like crackles than words.

"Oh, excuse me! Too excited, speak wrong. Thank you, dark nights." She made it obvious she didn't even know what a 'knight' technically was, as there was no point in combining those two words, but I was relieved that no one hated me yet and that nothing too permanent occurred.

"Now, Cali, do you know which way the attacking ship went?" I wasn't sure if she knew it was my ship, even if she could have seen the incredibly obvious model of my mask as a figurehead. She closed her eyes and seemed to be thinking hard. The other girl, who hopefully finished her conversation, decided to break in.

"I know where the sky ship went, sir." Ah, perhaps it was just that the young-looking Cali was learning. "It went toward sunset, West-going." Or maybe not, I couldn't actually tell if that was proper grammar. I thanked them both.

"Mister Metaknight?" Lololo flew up, Lalala on his heels metaphorically and almost literally. "What happened?" I gave another speech about how an accident I can't mention gave me injuries I have no details on and that I'll be fine at a time I'm not sure of. Luckily, the two children were satisfied with that answer and didn't press as much as the cappy children had. They decided to go since they found out what they were curious about from the other Leo girl I'd forgotten to get the name of, Lalala tripping and having to adjust her bow as they headed off to do something or other that wasn't too important to me.

"Brother." Halo put a hand on my shoulder, or rather hovered it right above as to not upset an injury. "Don't deny that you're hurt. I humbly request that I be allowed to help you deal with whatever might have happened." You couldn't call him manipulative, but he had a good skill for phrasing things in a way that one would feel too rude if they were to decline. So instead of arguing that I was fine despite the evidence, I went for the practical.

"The vessel we have is already completely full; we have four rooms and five members." He put a hand to his mouth, sliding his mask out of the way and around his head so it wouldn't be inconvenient. Another thing I could never do, I religiously kept all armor on if it was possible to without looking idiotic.

"Well, actually…" A voice I'd barely recognized, Swirls had exited the ship from his position of a pilot along with the GIM. He was now armed with a camera. "I was hoping that I could convince you to let me stay here, although I'm an amateur flyer what I actually know is reporting." He pulled a stereotypical news hat from nowhere and put it on, completing the outfit. "I'd love the chance to talk to and observe these people, since they so rarely allow anyone else near them." I hesitated, and then nodded. If he wanted to, there was no point in stopping him. After all, I barely knew the child.

"Then it's settled!" Halo grinned, his emotions much closer to the surface than I could allow mine. _Why was I still comparing the two of us?_ He was considerably better in some ways, and maybe eventually I'll think of some way I surpass him other than the superficial term of 'youth'. It was best not to dwell on sibling rivalry; I had the rest of my family to save… my crew. I had my crew to save. Should things turn worse, I should make note of the distinction.

"Welcome aboard then, Halo. I suppose you should bring whatever you have into the available room."


End file.
